->''"A long, long time ago in the east, there was a country called Jushin. In Jushin there lived secret agents known as Angyo Onshi. Angyo Onshi were special envoy designated by the king. They disguised themselves and roamed the country correcting corrupt governments and brought people to justice. However, Jushin has been destroyed, but there is still one Angyo Onshi wandering..."''-->-- Opening lines

''Shin Angyo Onshi'' (or ''Tale of the Phantom Blade Master'') is the story of Munsu, one of the few surviving men of the fallen empire Jushin. He also happens to have been one of Jushin's Angyo Onshi, operatives who wandered the countryside in disguise, righting wrongs and triumphing over evil with the power of his magical medallion and an army of phantom soldiers. Despite the destruction of Jushin (by his own hand, so the stories go) Munsu carries out his duty out of a sense of loyalty to the king that he supposedly killed and a burning desire for revenge against the man who masterminded everything - Aji Tae.

The comic was serialized from 2001 to 2007 in South Korea and in Japan, and was adapted into an animated theatrical-release film in 2004 in a first-of-its-kind collaboration between Japan and South Korea. In 2007, an English-language version of the film was released in the United States by Creator/ADVFilms under the MarketBasedTitle ''Blade of the Phantom Master''. In 2008, the anime became one of over 30 ADV titles transferred to Creator/{{Funimation}}.

Well known for its almost gratuitous level of WorldOfBadass. Has a [[Characters/ShinAngyoOnshi character sheet]].

----

!!This series provides examples of: * ActionGirl: Sando, Marlene von Lucid and Miss Hwang.* AGodAmI: Aji Tae. [[spoiler:Well, he is pretty close...]] * AFatherToHisMen: Munsu. [[spoiler: Every one of his subordinates held respect for him, and many wanted his forgiveness after they turned evil]]* ActuallyIAmHim: Subverted in the first chapter when the character the audience is led to believe is the Angyo Onshi is revealed to be the Evil Queen, and the JerkAss Munsu is revealed to be the the Angyo Onshi in disguise. Given a very disturbing and dark twist later on with Aji Tae and Munsu's friend the King.* AdaptationDistillation: The Movie follows the first three to four chapters of the Manga, and tells almost nothing about the actual plot of the series. * [[spoiler: AnyoneCanDie: Anyone remember Mong Ryong? Also the final battle. Borders on KillEmAll]]* AntiHero: Munsu, who is perfectly fine lying and stealing, yet is a wonderful hero* ArrogantKungFuGuy: Dorso. Subverted in the fact that he [[spoiler: Doesn't think he can beat Won Sul after Won Sul beat his two friends [[http://www.tenmanga.com/chapter/ShinAngyoOnshi39/163787-41.html in one swing]]]]* AscendedExtra: The prince from chapter three.* TheAtoner: Munsu, for his [[spoiler: effect on the death of Hae Mo Su and Kye Wol Hyang]]* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Munsu when he was a general, Aji Tae, General Urias von Lucid.* AwesomeMcCoolName: Munsu, Won Sul, Aji Tae, face it, who doesn't have an awesome ''Korean'' name?* BackToBackBadasses: Subverted in the final fight when [[spoiler: Eul Paso, Hwang, and Su are all surrounded by Aji Tae's Forces, while they do win, [[TookALevelInBadass in a moment of pure Badass]], two thirds of them are killed in the resulting explosion]]* BadassArmy: The Phantoms, and the Phantom women.* BadassBack: Won Sul never looks back at his dead opponents. [[spoiler: and Aji Tae Kills many without even looking at them]]* BadassBeard: Mito-Sama, Subverted in the fact that he can't use a sword, and double subverted when it is discovered he can [[spoiler: use magic better than even Lou]].* BadassBoast: "The Legendary General Munsu will wipe you clean off the face of the earth," Said to a guy who [[spoiler:destroyed an entire kingdom because he felt like it.]] See ThrowingDownTheGauntlet.* BadassCape: Sando and Lou. * BadassGrandpa: Mito, [[spoiler: he gets his eyes torn out and still beats the crap out of Lou.]]* BadassLongcoat: Munsu and Won Sul. The two of them standing next to each other is just so freaking cool. Munsu's was actually a plot point later on.* BadassLongRobe: Aji Tae* BadassNormal: Munsu, who is a man with Asthma who has no real supper powers other than his Mahai. However, he still is able to Kill a giant Snake Sorceress, fight against monsters much more powerful than him. The young ruler from chapter three who later [[spoiler: reappears with a sword and a rifle and almost sacrifices his arm without flinching in order to kill Lou]] also counts.* BareYourMidriff: Hwang and Sando.* BattleButler: Sando in a sense. * BeastMan: Aji Tae's Panther Girl bodyguard.* BerserkButton: Don't Mention Munsu's former lover or best friend in a negative light, or praise Aji Tae, or he will kill you.* BerserkerTears: [[spoiler: Won Sul]]. * {{BFS}}: Sando's sword is bigger than she is.* BigBad: Aji Tae.* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: Ondal deflecting a bullet aimed at Pyeonggyang,]] made awesome by the fact that he [[spoiler: doesn't even exist]]. * BigFancyHouse: Pyeonggang's house.* BigNo: Munsu, when [[spoiler: Aji Tae kills the nameless soldier]]* {{Bishonen}}: Many of the characters could qualify for this trope* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Aji Tae has been defeated and the world can begin to try and rebuild, but the fight came at the cost of Munsu and a majority of the supporting cast.]]* BlessedWithSuck: Won Sul. [[spoiler: He has a horrible family after his close brother dies and his father believes that he is a hollow comparison, believing he should be the one who died, He kills the tiny little girl who he played with in a field when he was young. He kills former friends when they turn on him after the war because they can not get used to peace. Then he works with the lord only to discover he is Aji Tae. He then turns against him, only to be turned into a pin doll, then watch everyone be killed, and then to be banished to the other end of the country. Then he is brainwashed to work for the man he most hates, dies, and then is pulled back to become an immortal zombie who can not die no matter how much he wants to, then he is blown up again, and has the rest of his body turned into a giant rampaging monster, who is finally killed. And that's the short version.]] * BodyguardCrush: Sando has one on Munsu [[spoiler: and later, on Aji Tae]]* BodyHorror: [[spoiler: The giant boob dragon that Won Hyo summons, Won Hyo himself when he is half demon, and Won Sul when he is monsterfied, and even to a lesser extent before that.]] Also, anything Lou does.* BreakTheCutie: Bang Ja.* BrilliantButLazy: Munsu.* CainAndAbel: Aji Tae and Munsu* CameBackWrong: Won Sul, though he is still badass.* CapeSnag:[[spoiler: in the very end of the final fight arc, Aji Tae's cape got snagged under Munsu's boot. This caused him to react too late to Sando's attack from behind.]]* CastFromLifespan: [[spoiler:Munsu after he heals himself from almost dying]].* CharacterDevelopment: Have you read the series. One time characters get freaking development.* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler: The needle with the mandrake extract on it. Who knew it would save his life when he most needed it. Also Aji Tae's ''cape'', which got stuck under Munsu's heel in the final fight and ultimately cost Aji Tae his life.]]* ChekhovMIA[=/=]ChekhovsGunman: Aji Tae, though he does appear pretty quickly.* TheCoatsAreOff: Averted. Munsu does look pretty bad ass without his coat, but he never takes it off, and Won Sul [[spoiler: becomes a [[NightmareFuel giant horrible monster]] when his coat is removed.]]* ColonelBadass: Munsu, the famous General.* CoolMask: Won Sul. [[spoiler: Turns out it is necessary.]]* CrapsackWorld* CulturedBadass: Lou and Aji Tae. Strangely enough, the heroes never seem to be cultured.* DarkActionGirl: Aji Tae's shapeshifting bodyguard Mago. Depending on how you view them, Hong Gildong and Marlene von Lucid can count for a bit. Also, later on: [[spoiler: Sando]]* DarkestHour: [[spoiler: The end of the Hong Gildong Arc and the Final Fight]]* DeadpanSnarker: Munsu* DealWithTheDevil: anyone who deals with Aji Tae is doing this. Lou and Gallimard do so pretty literally.. [[spoiler: Of course, Hae Mo So and Munsu may have done it in the past...]]* DeathIsCheap: Despite the high number of casualties, characters have a tendency to come back to life or be OnlyMostlyDead. Subverted in the case of [[spoiler: Kye Wol Hyang]] when characters speculate she might be alive, but it turns out [[spoiler: to be her half-sister.]]* DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu: Munsu does this a lot to Aji Tae* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: Munsu to Aji Tae, the first time literally [[spoiler:punching the black out of his hair.]]* DoomedHometown: Jushin* DroppedABridgeOnHim: This happens a lot later on.* TheDragon: Lou Ells fulfills this role for Aji Tae. [[spoiler: At one point, so did Yeong Sil and Sando does later on, before her HeelFaceTurn back to Munsu's side.]]* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:Munsu.]]* EarnYourHappyEnding: Possibly one of the most triumphant examples, with one of the highest stake endings to be seen in a manga.* TheEmpire: Old Jushin.* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Tae Yu. Originally, he was just a fast swordsman, before [[spoiler: becoming an all powerful summoner after training under Mito]]. Won Sul also counts, being just a simple badass swordsman before [[spoiler: breaking his sword and making his own from willpower]] He then ascended again when he [[spoiler: became an immortal zombie]]* EyeScream: [[spoiler: Munsu getting his eye blown out by a sadistic powerhouse]].* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: Sando. Also Won Sul, Won Hyo.]]* FallenHero: Most of Munsu's old comrades in the Kaidaten war crossed the DespairEventHorizon after Jushin's collapse, and by the time our story happens they've become underlings of Aji Tae, ironically the one who was responsible for the country's fall.** Also the three legendary generals of Jushin, one of whom even had his giant statue erected in the capital, who return to life to fight as Aji Tae's underlings. Now they're all [[BloodKnight Blood Knights]], who finds pleasure and satisfaction in fighting.* FirstEpisodeSpoiler: Munsu is the Main character * GondorCallsForAid: [[spoiler: Before the final battle. Just about everyone seen throughout the series arrives to battle Aji Tae's army.]]* HandicappedBadass: Munsu, who suffers from asthma through a majority of the series [[spoiler: until he starts dying of course]]. Lou can't see out of one his eyes, and Miho [[spoiler: can't see at all]]* HeartbrokenBadass: again, Munsu, who [[spoiler: had to kill his own lover even after taking on her incurable asthma, before proceeding to punch the black out of the bad guy's hair]]. Won Sul also fits as heartbroken after [[spoiler: killing the tiny child that he played with when he was a child]]. the [[spoiler: coming back from the dead after his best friend was killed]] didn't help either.* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: Won Sul, Eul Paso, Yeung Sil, Sando...]]* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Munsu dies to give Sando time to strike a final blow on Aji Tae at the end.]]** [[spoiler: A better example would be Kye Wol Hyang after getting resurrected by Aji Tae, who tells her the only way to receive true death is to kill Munsu. Then she sees that Munsu has already given up in defeating Aji Tae and she proceeds to commit suicide just to make him snap out of it. After a brief mourning Munsu starts with his RoaringRampageOfRevenge.]]* HeroKiller: [[spoiler: Aji Tae, he kills everyone.]]* HonorBeforeReason: Sando pulls it once when she prevents Munsu from shooting Mago in the back. Munsu slaps her in the face for it.* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Nongae was sold into prostitution to pay for her family's debts. She's one of the kindest, sweetest and nicest people Munsu meets in his travels.* IfYoureSoEvilEatThisKitten: 'The Attack of the Yojin Tribe' demonstrates why you should ''never'' ask a MasterOfIllusion to do this.* IllGirl: Munsu's former fiancee, Kye Wol Hyang. * IncurableCoughOfDeath: Double subverted with [[spoiler: Munsu, who has the cough of death, but survives, only for it to be revealed that he will soon die anyway.]]* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Munsu* LightIsNotGood: Aji Tae. His Light kills people.* MadScientist: Yeong Sil. Sure he means well with his inventions, but....* ManlyTears: Won Sul [[spoiler: after being blown up by Aji Tae, and again after being blown up ''again'' by Munsu]]. * MonsterClown: Munsu's Phantom Soldiers definitely have this vibe. As does Dorso.* MoodWhiplash: Mong Ryong.* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: In volume 15, we finally get to see [[spoiler:Munsu beat the everloving shit out of Aji Tae, reducing him to a [[VillainousBreakdown ranting, screaming wreck of a man in the process]] as he struggles to understand why his powers aren't working on Munsu. Given the truly monstrous stuff Aji Tae had done in the preceding few chapters, it is ''extremely'' satisfying to see.]]* NotMeThisTime: When Munsu first encounters the Hwalbindang he immediately assumes they must be working for Aji Tae, but they've never even heard of him. [[spoiler:Although it later turns out he's indirectly and inadvertently responsible for their existence - his actions are what drove Kye Wol Hyang to suicide and Hong Gildong blamed Munsu for her death, which inspired her to start the group.]]* PleaseWakeUp: [[spoiler: Munsu, said by Bang Ja]]* PostRapeTaunt-->[[spoiler:'''Aji Tae''': ''When I was Hae Mo Su, do you know what I enjoyed most? It was... when I held Kye Wol Hyang.'']]* RapeAsDrama: Subverted in the first chapter, where it appears the local guard's corrupt commander has had his way with one of the prisoners. [[spoiler:It's Munsu, who used his time alone with her as an excuse to break her out and have some very ''consensual'' sex in the process.]]** Player painfully straight with [[spoiler: Kye Wol Hyang, to the point she is DrivenToSuicide. Which ''[[ImmortalityHurts doesn't even work.]]'']]* RevealingHug: Aji Tae delivers a [[http://i.imgur.com/J2ClxyP.jpg spectacularly creepy one]] to Sando.* SinisterMinister: Gallimard, one of Aji Tae's henchmen. A demonic former priest.* SlasherSmile: Aji Tae.* {{Stripperific}}: Sando's outfit. Hwang tends to wear revealing clothing, too. * SupernaturalMartialArts: Apparently Tae Kwon Do practitioners were among the elite of Jushin's forces.* ThrowingDownTheGauntlet: Aji Tae meets Munsu.* TheUnreveal: [[spoiler: We never learn Sando's true form, even though Munsu sees it.]]* WickedCultured: Aji Tae, Lou, and Gallimard.* WorldOfBadass: Obviously.-----